There are nine games on Thursday's NBA slate, meaning bettors will have plenty of opportunities for action. Some of tonight's most intriguing lines are in the Trail Blazers-Kings, Spurs-Mavericks, and Warriors-Lakers games, and the betting experts from BetQL have sorted through all the odds to help you find the best wagers.
One trend to note is that the BetQL NBA Model finished the first half strong, going 11-2 (85 percent) on all moneyline picks in the final two days before the break for a quick $395 on $100 bets! Take advantage of BetQL's free trial and see all of today's NBA best bets, plus what the model is projecting for this week's NHL, soccer, and NCAA basketball games! Start your free trial today!
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Today's Best NBA Bets: Odds, lines, & picks for Thursday
By Kate Constable
Trail Blazers at Kings Prediction
The Trail Blazers (28-30 SU, 29-27-2 ATS, 28-28 O/U) hit the road for their first game post-All-Star break, taking on the Kings (32-25 SU, 31-26 ATS, 27-29 O/U) tonight.
The last time these two teams met was the season-opener when the Blazers won, 115-108, in Sacramento. A lot has changed since then, which is why I’m going to take the Kings to cover -5.5 at home. Sacramento was playing really well before the break and should be able to pick up with it left off. Over the last five games, the Kings ranked in the top 10 in points off turnovers, fast-break points, and points in the paint, all areas in which the Blazers rank outside of the top 10 in defending. It’s also unclear whether Jusuf Nurkic will be back after being sidelined for much of February. If he’s unable to play, Domantas Sabonis should have a big advantage in the frontcourt.
PICK: Kings -5.5
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Spurs at Mavericks Prediction
The Spurs (14-15 SU, 24-35 ATS, 32-25 O/U) and Mavericks (31-29 SU, 22-35-3 ATS, 33-27 O/U) meet for the second time this season.
We're at the point in the season where the good teams start to turn it on and bad teams start to fade into the abyss, and this game going to be a perfect example of that. Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic have a few games together under their belt and seem to have bonded a bit over All-Star weekend. The last time these two teams met, San Antonio only lost by one thanks in large part to its rebounding. It out-rebounded the Mavs, 48-26, but I don't anticipate that being the case again being the Spurs just traded away their starting big man Jakob Poeltl. The Spurs also have a bottom-five defensive rating over their past 10 games and that's going to be troublesome against Dallas' offense that now features two players who can score at will in Irving and Doncic.
PICK: Mavericks -13.5
Warriors at Lakers Prediction
The Lakers (27-32 SU, 26-29-4 ATS, 32-26 O/U) welcome the Warriors (29-29 SU, 27-31 ATS, 35-20 O/U) to town for the first time this season.
The over 238 in this game is one of our BetQL model's favorite totals of the day. The Lakers' offense got significantly better at the trade deadline, adding D'Angelo Russell, who can facilitate and take some of the playmaking load off of LeBron James. He can also score himself, adding at least 15 points in each of his three games in the purple and gold. The Lakers have also picked up the pace quite a bit in those games, ranking third in pace over that timeframe, which typically equates to more scoring opportunities. The Warriors, even without Steph Curry, are fully capable of pouring in a big number any given night, so trust our model and take the over.
PICK: Warriors-Lakers OVER 238